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Diagnosing a speech impediment in a child, especially when they’re of an early age, can be a challenge. During their early formative years, it’s easy to mistake what could be a clear sign of a speech impediment as simply a normal part of their speech development. However, there are some clear signs that parents could look for that could indicate your child may be indeed suffering from a speech disorder. Here are some of these signs:
Language Disorder
There are many signs that your child may be suffering from a language disorder. One of the most telling signs is if the child doesn't interact on a social level with other babies or doesn’t smile at all. Another sign is if your child doesn’t babble at all. Your child should start babbling by the 4th month; if it’s past the 7th and he still isn’t babbling regularly, then there might be an issue.
Some other signs will appear by the 7th month. For instance, if they use gestures a lot to express themselves or if have they have trouble understanding what people are saying by the time they’re 2, then this might be a cause for concern. If the child jumbles his words or simply can’t put sentences together by the age of 3, then he might have a language disorder as well.
Speech Sound Disorder
A speech sound disorder is a more specific type of language disorder that can affect your child when they’re pronouncing certain letters. For instance, a common speech sound disorder is rhoticism, when people can’t pronounce their “R”s correctly. Instead, you may notice that they pronounce their “R”s as “W”s. While some children eventually learn to pronounce properly, it can follow them for the rest of their lives. Children may also struggle with the h, m, b, p, and w in phrases. If by the time they’ve reached 2 years of age, they haven’t made a correction, then it’s a clear sign that they may be suffering from a speech sound disorder.
Stuttering
Stuttering is another common speech disorder that can be identified early in children. If by the age of 3 they still are struggling to say words or sounds or have a tendency to stretch out words, such as saying “f-f-farm” instead of “farm” or “b-b-ball” instead of a ball, then this could be a sign. You should also see if they have a tendency of making irregular pauses when speaking and breaks in cadence. While this can be temporary, you should consider seeing an SLP or visiting Stutteringdoctor.com and looking at some of their speech therapy material if it persists.
Dealing with a child’s speech disorder can be alarming to parents. If you feel like your child may be suffering from one, we suggest you start looking for help today. You should also do everything in your power to be as attentive as you can with your child so that you can identify early symptoms and try to correct them early.
